Wondering where Gabon came and why would you want to go to Gabon? Well, no need to worry, you’ll find out soon! But you do need a visa right? Now that will need you to know about the visa policy of Gabon and this is the second thing that we need to take a look at. Gabon offers various sets of visa policies to its visitors. There is some nation who counted under the policy of Gabon visa-free country or some counted under the policy of Gabon visa on arrival.
Gabon is a country located in Africa. Well, it has also been called the Gabonese Republic and is situated on the west coast of Africa. It is surrounded by about 4 countries in all four of its sides. With Equatorial Guinea, Cameroon, Republic of Congo, and the Gulf of Guinea all surrounding the area covered by Gabon. Libreville is the capital of Gabon and is one of the largest cities in this country. It has a population of 2.1 million people living in the country and with tons of tourists now going to Gabon every year has increased the popularity of the country by a significant notch for sure!
Well, for all of these reasons one should definitely try out Gabon. But wait, you might actually need a visa for going to Gabon. This visa, however, will be required by some and not by the others and this is what you need to find out whether you actually need one or not!
There are only about 9 countries that would actually not need a visa to enter Gabon. While all of the other countries will surely need a visa before you actually go to Gabon. Here are those 9 countries whole nationals can go to Gabon without a visa:
| Cameroon | Central African republic | Republic of Congo | Chad | Equatorial guinea |
| Mauritius | Morocco | South Africa | Tunisia |
All of the above states country’s nationals can visit Gabon and stay for free without a visa for about 90 days. However, the citizens who belong to Morocco and South Africa can only stay for 30 days in Gabon without a visa. After the limited period of free stay, the people will probably have to exit the country and re-enter if they need another free stay.
There are other people as well who do not require a visa and these are the people who hold diplomatic, official, or service passports. However, only some of the countries can enter on these criteria and the list can be given as follows:
| Benin | Brazil | Burkina Faso | China | Cote d’Ivoire | Cuba |
| Djibouti | Egypt | France | Guinea | Israel | Mali |
| Russia | Senegal | South Korea | Germany | Turkey |
There has been a recent agreement with Togo which specified that those holders of diplomatic and service passports and belong to this country can enter Gabon without a visa. This was signed on the 25th of September 2018 but has not yet been put into effect.
Visa on arrival for foreigners visiting Gabon:
Those who will be visiting Gabon but need a visa can also get a Gabon visa on arrival. But this as mentioned above is not open to all of the countries. There are only some that can avail of this facility and the countries that can get this service can be given as follows:
All of the above-listed country’s nationals can get the visa to Gabon for 90 days when they arrive at the airport. Another point to be noted is that apart from the nationals whose countries have been mentioned above, those people who hold an entry authorization can also get a visa on arrival. But this entry authorization that they hold must be taken before arriving at Gabon. It should also be issued by the immigration officer from the place that you come.
Electronic visa for foreigners:
It was in January 2015 that the electronic visa came into existence in Gabon. This electronic visa was for all of those nationals who belonged to any of the countries that needed a visa. This visa was first introduced however on June 15, 2015. This visa is issued by about 72 hours after the application has been completed. The visa to be valid the foreigners will have to arrive at the Leon Mba International Airport which is situated in Libreville.
Transit through Gabon without a visa:
If you are planning to transit through Gabon and are worried about the visa, then don’t worry as you can transit through Gabon without a visa provided you follow all of the conditions. The conditions include the following:
1. Only the nationals of the following countries can access this transit free travel:
AlbaniaArmeniaAzerbaijanBelarusBulgariaPeoples republic of china
| Czech republic | Georgia | Hungary | Kazakhstan | Republic of Korea | Kyrgyzstan |
| Moldova | Mongolia | Montenegro | Poland | Romania | Russia |
| Serbia | Slovakia | Tajikistan | Turkmenistan | Ukraine | Uzbekistan |
| Vietnam |
All of the above-mentioned nationals can transit without a visa.
2. Those people who will be transiting through Gabon are not allowed to stay for more than 24 hours.
3. The people who will be transiting through Gabon must also travel by the same plane or the first connecting plane to their destination.
4. Those people who belong to Lebanon can not avail of this service.
The people who follow all of the above conditions can get a transit through Gabon. Rest all of the nationals will need a visa to go through transit.
FAQs:
Q. Is a visa necessary to be taken to go to Gabon?
If you have been listed under the visa on arrival or the electronic visa list then you will need a visa to be taken before you go to Gabon. Apart from these none of the other countries need to take one.
Q. Can the foreigners know about the transiting services that are provided by Gabon?
Once you read through the visa policy of Gabon, it has clearly specified about the transit facilities and those who can avail of this facility.
